Droid Life » Appshttp://www.droid-life.com
An intense Android news community bringing you the latest in phones, rooting, apps, and reviews.Sat, 01 Aug 2015 18:19:40 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Friday App Sales: Goat Simulator Z, Fotonica, F1 Challenge, and Morehttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/friday-app-sales-goat-simulator-z-fotonica-f1-challenge-and-more/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/friday-app-sales-goat-simulator-z-fotonica-f1-challenge-and-more/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 20:50:50 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171728Friday App Sales: Goat Simulator Z, Fotonica, F1 Challenge, and More is a post from: Droid Life
]]>If you don’t have any plans for the next couple of days over the weekend, a few of the apps and games currently on sale through Google Play may help pass the time, such as Goat Simulator Z and Fotonica, just a couple of the games available at a discounted price.

In addition to those two titles, you can pickup Abs Workout Pro and Abs Workout II Pro if getting in shape this weekend is on your list. Not only are there health-focused apps available, but the couch potatoes among us can grab God of Light HD and Neuroshima Hex, if lounging and playing a few games sounds more fun.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/friday-app-sales-goat-simulator-z-fotonica-f1-challenge-and-more/feed/11Textra and Chomp SMS Issue Updates That Could Stop Stagefright Attackshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/textra-and-chomp-sms-issue-updates-that-could-stop-stagefright-attacks/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/textra-and-chomp-sms-issue-updates-that-could-stop-stagefright-attacks/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 20:34:51 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171725Textra and Chomp SMS Issue Updates That Could Stop Stagefright Attacks is a post from: Droid Life
]]>On Monday, a pretty serious security vulnerability in Android’s Stagefright was exposed, one that has left almost all Android phones susceptible to an attack. Of course, at this time, the vulnerability has been kept under wraps and supposedly only shared with Google and OEMs to hopefully get it patched. Unfortunately, patching Stagefright takes a system update that has yet to arrive on anyone’s phone. In other words, even though the vulnerability is known by Google and they have patched things on their end, we are all potentially open to attacks.

To hopefully help stop attacks, a couple of popular SMS apps on Android have issued updates. Both Textra and Chomp SMS (apps are owned by the same company) received updates today that attempt to stop video MMS messages from automatically running, which is a part of the issue with this Stagefright exploit. Who knows how successful their tweaks could be with a malicious MMS received, but any attempt by a company to help stop an attack is a good thing in our eyes, especially while we wait what could be months for OEMs and Google to push out patches.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/textra-and-chomp-sms-issue-updates-that-could-stop-stagefright-attacks/feed/25New, Simplified Invitation Settings are Rolling Out to Hangoutshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/new-simplified-invitations-settings-are-rolling-out-to-hangouts/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/new-simplified-invitations-settings-are-rolling-out-to-hangouts/#commentsFri, 31 Jul 2015 17:43:30 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171713New, Simplified Invitation Settings are Rolling Out to Hangouts is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Googler Jordanna Chord announced via G+ yesterday that they are rolling out new invitation settings to Hangouts over the next day or so. These new settings should “make it easier for folks to communicate,” but from what we can tell, they are really just a simplified version of the current settings. That will surely help making communication easier, but it will hopefully make controlling your settings less of a pain.

You can see a preview of the new settings below, assuming you haven’t received what we can imagine is server-side switch to them on your phone or tablet. The image shows everything bundled together, with a “Recommended” button helping you take Google’s advice on how your invitation settings should work. Otherwise, you can go “Customized” and pick and choose how you receive invitations for chats.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/31/new-simplified-invitations-settings-are-rolling-out-to-hangouts/feed/11WWE Network App Just Hit Android TV, Brotherhttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/wwe-network-app-just-hit-android-tv-brother/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/wwe-network-app-just-hit-android-tv-brother/#commentsThu, 30 Jul 2015 22:15:39 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171698WWE Network App Just Hit Android TV, Brother is a post from: Droid Life
]]>A new app catered to wrestling fans hit Google Play this week for Android TV owners, being WWE Network. With it, and the subscription that is needed to use it, you can watch all of your upcoming WWE events, as well as take a step back through time and re-watch all of your favorite events from history.

With a WWE subscription, you gain access to all of the upcoming pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania, plus 24/7 scheduled and live programming. If you have yet to sign up, WWE is offering one month free trial of the service.

I cannot confirm if any Hulk videos are on WWE’s servers anymore, but you never know.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/wwe-network-app-just-hit-android-tv-brother/feed/19Android Developers Get Two New Ways to Beta Test Appshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/android-developers-get-two-new-ways-to-beta-test-apps/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/android-developers-get-two-new-ways-to-beta-test-apps/#commentsThu, 30 Jul 2015 18:31:06 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171682Android Developers Get Two New Ways to Beta Test Apps is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Two years ago, Google introduced beta testing for Android app developers that allowed them to open new features and versions of their apps to users through closed groups on Google+. That beta testing method, even though it can be quite finicky, has apparently been enough of a success that Google has decided to expand upon the beta testing methods available to developers. Today, they are introducing open betas and closed beta that only require emails.

With open betas, developers are giving access to “any user who has the link” to their beta app the chance to be a tester. That’s an incredibly simple way to get people into beta testing, which is awesome. With closed betas that require email addresses, you get more control over who tests your apps, but without the need to deal with Google+.

Both options sound like fantastic additions to the Android beta testing program:

Open beta – Use an open beta when you want any user who has the link to be able to join your beta with just one click. One of the advantages of an open beta is that it allows you to scale to a large number of testers. However, you can also limit the maximum number of users who can join.

Closed beta using email addresses – If you want to restrict which users can access your beta, you have a new option: you can now set up a closed beta using lists of individual email addresses which you can add individually or upload as a .csv file. These users will be able to join your beta via a one-click opt-in link.

As you see developers introduce some of these methods, be sure to let us know.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/android-developers-get-two-new-ways-to-beta-test-apps/feed/9Rovio Releases Angry Birds 2 to Google Play, Complete With Magic Spells and Boss Piggieshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/rovio-releases-angry-birds-2-to-google-play-complete-with-magic-spells-and-boss-piggies/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/rovio-releases-angry-birds-2-to-google-play-complete-with-magic-spells-and-boss-piggies/#commentsThu, 30 Jul 2015 15:48:54 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171668Rovio Releases Angry Birds 2 to Google Play, Complete With Magic Spells and Boss Piggies is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Angry Birds 2, the long awaited sequel to the original Angry Birds, is now available on Google Play for all to experience. Rovio made folks wait a few solid years for this release, and if the Google Play and iTunes ratings are any indicator, it appears the publisher did a solid job.

Much like the original and all of the following variants, your main goal is to destroy structures made by piggies. At the beginning of each level, you were given a lineup up different birds to use, but now, it appears you must earn different “cards” of birds to use their various powers to destroy the homes of pigs. These cards can be used in any order you see fit, making the game more of a strategy title than just a plain slingshot game.

Rovio states in the game’s description that it is completely free to play, but there are in-app purchases for those who choose to use them. They range in price from $0.99 to $99.99. These IAPs are likely used to boost your spells or to give you a limited amount of powerful cards for you to knock down piggy structures with.

Go check out this sequel, then let us know what you think in the comments below.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/30/rovio-releases-angry-birds-2-to-google-play-complete-with-magic-spells-and-boss-piggies/feed/18Motorola Updates Moto App on Google Play, Brings Auto Location and Activity Adjustmenthttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/motorola-updates-moto-app-on-google-play-brings-auto-location-and-activity-adjustment/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/motorola-updates-moto-app-on-google-play-brings-auto-location-and-activity-adjustment/#commentsWed, 29 Jul 2015 22:50:37 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171663Motorola Updates Moto App on Google Play, Brings Auto Location and Activity Adjustment is a post from: Droid Life
]]>An updated version of the official Moto app from Motorola is available to download on Google Play, bringing a feature perfect for those who attend the movies every once in a while.

With the update, Moto 3.0 adjusts to both places and activities. For example, if you head to the movie theaters, you can set that location for the device to recognize, and it will automatically silence itself for the duration of your stay.

The update is now live on Google Play, so if you have a supported device, go grab it.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/motorola-updates-moto-app-on-google-play-brings-auto-location-and-activity-adjustment/feed/31Google Search Now Shows ‘Popular Times’ For Businesseshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-search-now-shows-popular-times-for-businesses/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-search-now-shows-popular-times-for-businesses/#commentsWed, 29 Jul 2015 18:09:26 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171641Google Search Now Shows ‘Popular Times’ For Businesses is a post from: Droid Life
]]>With so much excitement yesterday morning, we missed this gem recently announced for Google Search users. Now appearing in search results when you place an inquiry for a business, you will be shown Popular Times for said business, hopefully leading you to not wasting time in long lines or crowds.

After taking it for a spin on a few places by my home (Best Buy, Target, and McDonald’s), it seems to work just fine, displaying to me which times these businesses are most busy. To see these times, when you go onto a store or business’s search result page, scroll down a little bit until you see the graphs. Once there, you can swipe left or right to see which day of the week you want.

These changes have already rolled out to Google Search, so go check it out.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-search-now-shows-popular-times-for-businesses/feed/16Google Translate Gets 20 New Languages for Visual Translations, Speeds Up Voice Translationshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-translate-gets-20-languages-for-visual-translations-speeds-up-voice-translations/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-translate-gets-20-languages-for-visual-translations-speeds-up-voice-translations/#commentsWed, 29 Jul 2015 15:48:09 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171631Google Translate Gets 20 New Languages for Visual Translations, Speeds Up Voice Translations is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Thanks to an update, Google Translate now supports 20 more languages through its visual translation feature, giving it a total of 27. Also, the update speeds up and smooths out real-time voice translations, even when you have a poor network connection.

As for the new speedy performance, Google knows that many of the countries where you would need Translate don’t have the most reliable wireless networks. So with this update, they focused on making sure your conversations are as fast as ever, if if your connection isn’t.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/29/google-translate-gets-20-languages-for-visual-translations-speeds-up-voice-translations/feed/1Send Your WhatsApp and Viber Messages With Voice Instead of Thumbshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/28/send-your-whatsapp-and-viber-messages-with-voice-instead-of-thumbs/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/28/send-your-whatsapp-and-viber-messages-with-voice-instead-of-thumbs/#commentsTue, 28 Jul 2015 18:14:22 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171592Send Your WhatsApp and Viber Messages With Voice Instead of Thumbs is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Tired of using your thumbs like a Neanderthal to send messages to friends via your favorite 3rd-party messaging apps? Well, Google now wants you to use your beautiful speaking voice, allowing you to speak exactly what you want sent through messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Viber, and WeChat.

The idea is pretty basic. On your home screen, say, “Ok Google, send a WhatsApp message to Kellen: You partying in NYC with Diddy tonight?” With that command, the Google app will instruct WhatsApp to send the message to that specific contact, and then you are all done. The same can be done for Viber, WeChat, Telegram, and NextPlus.

In order to get this going, you will need updated apps from Google Play, but once you have them, it should all work seamlessly with zero issues.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/28/send-your-whatsapp-and-viber-messages-with-voice-instead-of-thumbs/feed/12Victory: Google Decoupling Google+ and YouTubehttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/27/victory-google-decoupling-google-and-youtube/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/27/victory-google-decoupling-google-and-youtube/#commentsMon, 27 Jul 2015 17:41:09 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171375Victory: Google Decoupling Google+ and YouTube is a post from: Droid Life
]]>In a blog post published this morning, Google states that with Google+, a few things could have gone better. “While we got certain things right, we made a few choices that, in hindsight, we’ve needed to rethink,” Google admits. If you happen to use YouTube and Google+, then you will know that statement could not be more true.

Before the changes that are set to take place, setting up a YouTube account attached to a Google+ profile, especially if you are a Google Apps user, was beyond ridiculous. And please, let’s not get started on the YouTube comments section regarding the involvement of Google+ and your need for a profile attached to your existing Google account.

Beginning now and progressing into the near future, Google is taking steps, alongside YouTube, to detach Google+ from a few of its services. Now, Google+ will be used more as a place to view topics you are interested in, instead of a full blown social network where you go to view photos and see where your friends are. These changes have already begun taking place, as Google has removed most photo features from the social network, releasing a dedicated Photos service for all users, separate from Google+.

Google states that by moving a few of these features, it will create, “a more useful, more engaging Google+.” Moving forward, as time goes by, we will begin to see a reshaped Google+ experience, one more catered to sharing interests with friends and family, untied to the rest of your Google profile.

More importantly, let’s talk YouTube. In the coming months, YouTube states that users will be able to completely unlink their Google+ profile from their YouTube account. This means that when you want to create a YouTube account, comment on videos, or upload a video, you will not need a Google+ profile. All you will need is your primary Google account, which will remain unsearchable on the worldwide web.

In addition to that major change, YouTube has a few key changes that will take affect immediately. First, any comments you make on YouTube will only be shared on YouTube, not on Google+. Also, YouTube has improved the ranking system that reduces the visibility of junk comments, leading to more intelligent conversations between viewers. If you are a creator, however, the ability to moderate comments and block people is all staying the same. No changes there. Do note, if you like the integration between Google+ and YouTube, you may choose to keep it and nothing will change. The choice is entirely yours.

To get more detailed information on what exactly these changes mean for your Google+ and YouTube account, follow the below links.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/27/victory-google-decoupling-google-and-youtube/feed/23Instagram is Rolling Out a New Quick Edit Screen on Androidhttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/instagram-is-rolling-out-a-new-quick-edit-screen-on-android/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/instagram-is-rolling-out-a-new-quick-edit-screen-on-android/#commentsSat, 25 Jul 2015 19:52:50 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171336Instagram is Rolling Out a New Quick Edit Screen on Android is a post from: Droid Life
]]>I went on a hike this morning and took some photos to post to Instagram. As I loaded up the app (v7.3.0), I noticed a new screen that seemed a bit different after choosing/taking a photo. You can see what I’m talking about in the image above (and video below), which appears to be a new quick edit/filter screen.

In previous builds of Instagram, after you chose or snapped a new photo, you were asked to crop before editing in a screen that listed out filters at the bottom, along with some other controls. In this new screen, you skip right past the edit screen and onto a page that lets you swipe across the screen to quickly adjust filters, before adding comments and tags. If you would like to get deeper into editing tools, an “Edit” button in the bottom left of your photo will get you there. There is also a button for tagging people in the opposite corner.

This new quick posting screen seems to show a handful of nearby locations that you can scroll through as well, along with a simpler caption box.

This update seems to be rolling out via server-side update. We were also able to get one device switched to this new UI after clearing data on the app. Feel free to test for yourself by updating your app or sideloading via the .apk below.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/instagram-is-rolling-out-a-new-quick-edit-screen-on-android/feed/18OnePlus 2 Invite Reservation List Now Open, VR Launch App Hits Play Storehttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/oneplus2-invites/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/oneplus2-invites/#commentsSat, 25 Jul 2015 15:08:17 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171329OnePlus 2 Invite Reservation List Now Open, VR Launch App Hits Play Store is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Two hours ago (at the time of this posting) on a Saturday, OnePlus decided to open up a registration list for invites to purchase the OnePlus 2. Hopefully, you saw the posting minutes after it went live, because the list is already closing in on 20,000 people.

As many of you know, in order to purchase a OnePlus 2, you will need an invite. This list, is like a back-up for those who don’t have exclusive access to early invites or who don’t feel like participating in OnePlus’ social experiments. Still, this may be the only way that many of you can get an invite, even if it is already 20K people long.

To put your name in the reservation waiting list, hit up this link and quickly scroll to the bottom.

On a semi-related note, the OnePlus 2 will be officially unveiled on Monday through a streamed press event. If you took up OnePlus on their free VR cardboard offer, you can stream the event in VR through a recently released Android app. In fact, the app just popped up on Google Play last night. Be sure to grab it below.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/25/oneplus2-invites/feed/109YouTube Gets a Redesign on Android, New Video Creation Toolshttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/24/youtube-gets-a-redesign-on-android-new-video-creation-tools/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/24/youtube-gets-a-redesign-on-android-new-video-creation-tools/#commentsFri, 24 Jul 2015 14:53:24 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171298YouTube Gets a Redesign on Android, New Video Creation Tools is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Notice anything different about your YouTube app this week? You should have received an update to YouTube within the last day that introduced a new 3-tabbed design to make it “easier than ever to find videos you love.”

The new app ditches the slideout navigation menu for three tabs or columns of Home, Subscriptions, and Account. Those names are pretty self explanatory, but the basics are you get to explore and discover videos with recommendations on your Home, find the latest from your subscriptions on the Subscriptions page, and check out your own account or upload new videos in the Account page.

The app is slick, fast, and easy to navigate, it’s just surprising to see Google continue to change up its design language. Is this the beginning of the end for the slideout drawer? Obviously, that all depends on the application.

]]>http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/24/youtube-gets-a-redesign-on-android-new-video-creation-tools/feed/49Google Voice Voicemail Transcriptions are Now Dramatically Betterhttp://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/23/google-voice-voicemail-transcriptions-are-now-dramatically-better/
http://www.droid-life.com/2015/07/23/google-voice-voicemail-transcriptions-are-now-dramatically-better/#commentsThu, 23 Jul 2015 21:32:15 +0000http://www.droid-life.com/?p=171284Google Voice Voicemail Transcriptions are Now Dramatically Better is a post from: Droid Life
]]>Just over a year ago, Google asked Google Voice users for help in improving their voicemail transcription service because it often produced “humorously intelligible” results (see above). Today, the company reported back saying that thanks to participant help, they have been able to reduce transcription errors by 49%. And as a part of that announcement, Google has announced an improved voicemail system for Google Voice and Project Fi that delivers far more accurate transcriptions.

As a Google Voice or Project Fi user, you don’t have to do anything special in order to experience the new system. All you have to do is continue to use either service.

Yay for improvements that don’t ask you to do a thing.

If you want to sign-up for Google Voice (yes, it still exists and accepts new users), head here.